The FITT Principle

The FITT Principle is essential for program design. It provides a foundation for building an effective training program for all workout regimes, from the basic to the advance. FITT stands for:

Frequency: The number of times you exercise per week. This will vary with an athlete′s age, conditioning and training goals. The frequency of workouts will also be dependent on individual commitments outside of health and fitness, such school, work and family commitments. Thus, it is important for each individual to prepare back-up plans to accommodate setbacks and maintain a regular training schedule.

Intensity: The degree of effort required by your workout. This varies between each component of fitness:
  • Cardio-respiratory Exercise: intensity measured by the percentage of maximum, estimated heart rate you are working at

  • Muscular Strength/Endurance: intensity measured by percentage of maximum effort (ex. 1-rep max)

  • Flexibility: intensity is relative to the pain threshold (below) or measured by the stretch duration


Time: The duration of your activity (seconds, minutes, hours). This applies to both your workout period and the time taken for recovery. In order to have a training effect, participants should do continuous exercise for at least 20-60 minutes. Beginners should gradually build their fitness levels and repertoires of skills rather train for long periods of time and be susceptible to injury. This is a crucial component of a successful exercise program, thus it is always necessary to be realistic and arrange enough time for your workouts.


Type: The form of exercise (ex. stretching, cardio, weight-training, plyometrics, sport, etc) and the energy systems that are involved. An individual should also train according to the movements and skills involved in their specific goals. For instance, soccer players could practice ball-handling, basketball players rehearse free-throw shots, and rowers strengthen upper-body through weight-training.

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